Staryu Line/ORAS
Wild Staryu can only be obtained by use of the Super rod in Lilycove City as a rare encounter. Water stones can be obtained through fighting Psychic Inver in Mauville City, by trading a blue shard to the treasure hunter in route 124, from Fisherman Elliot in rematches on route 106 or as a prize from the Super Secret Training Programs 'The Water Stone Cup Begins!' or 'The Battle for the Best!'. '' While Starmie used to be an outright amazing Pokémon in previous generations, through a combination of its good typing, movepool and stats, the slow powercreep through the generations has finally started to catch up to the former powerhouse. Its formally good defences for an attacking Pokémon are now mediocre at best and base 100 special attack is somewhat underwhelming in a game filled with Mega evolutions boasting significantly higher attack power. Combined with it still being one of the rarest Pokémon in Hoenn, and you may find yourself asking why use it when things like Gyarados, the Mega Latis, Mega Alakazam and Mega Swampert exist. In reality though Starmie is still a solid Pokémon. While its stats might not be what they used to, outside of Mega evolutions, ORAS plays relatively similar to the originals. As such it is still one of the best Water-types in the game for those who did not start with Mudkip, and its special slant lets it avoid overlapping with both Swampert and Gyarados outside of sharing a primary type. Additionally, its movepool is vast, allowing for Starmie to be an adaptive Pokémon. Being able to customise its moveset for whatever it is needed to fight is a powerful trait, separating it from its competition as a Water-type special attacker alongside its naturally high speed. So if you fish this dull brown starfish up, it is well worthwhile investing into if you are still looking for a Water or Psychic-type. Important Matchups * '''Gym #7 - Tate and Liza (Mossdeep City, Psychic-type):' Between a resistance to Psychic and access to STAB Surf, Starmie is able to effortlessly hold its own here. Both Lunatone and Solrock are 2HKO'd and while they both have ways to try and mitigate the incoming damage through Light Screen and Sunny Day respectively, you have a second Pokémon on the field to pick them off, allowing for Starmie to clean up the following turn if needed. Even in the event where Solrock manages to somehow get a Solar Beam off, it still only does 50-60% at equal levels, which even with a critical is manageable. * Maxie/Archie (Seafloor Cavern): Their lead Mightyena might have actually posed something of a threat to Starmie, what with the line's main Dark moves now being physical, however in both versions, it lacks a STAB move. As such the worst it can do is try to 4HKO with Take Down, meanwhile Surf has a high chance to flat out OHKO before it moves. While Crobat and Maxie's Weezing implode to Psychic without much of a struggle, bar Crobat using Acrobatics to deal about 40%, Archie's Muk will live a non-critical Psychic from a level 45 Starmie. Its retaliation in Gunk Shot will do between 50 and 60% in exchange, so be careful if Starmie has taken prior damage. In regards to their mega evolutions, Camerupt is washed away by whatever Water move you feel like using before it does anything, however Sharpedo might be a problem depending on your Starmie's speed and special attack stat. If Starmie has 109 speed or more going into this fight, it is going to outspeed Sharpedo, avoiding the OHKO from Crunch. However with its Mega, Sharpedo actually gains a decent amount of special bulk. With the expert belt equipped, Starmie needs 113 special attack in order to ensure a OHKO on Mega Sharpedo with Grass Knot and 126 for Thunderbolt to do the same. If you meet these requirements, feel free to throw Starmie at it. * Primal Groudon (Cave of Origin, Omega Ruby only): '''At equal levels Precipice Blades has an extremely high chance to OHKO Starmie, and due to Desolate Land nullifying all incoming Water-type damage, Starmie lacks a way to reliably deal damage to Primal Groudon. Even if Starmie has maximum special attack and Groudon has a negative sp.def nature, Blizzard is only a 3HKO. Very few Pokémon, mega or not, are capable of standing up to Primal Groudon, and Starmie is not one of them. * '''Primal Kyogre (Cave of Origin, Alpha Sapphire only): '''Even with Thunder at its disposal, Starmie struggles in this fight. At equal levels with the primal, Thunder only has a 27% chance to 2HKO if Starmie is fully invested with perfect IVs and a boosting nature, meanwhile Origin Pulse is doing 65% minimum, which can flat out one shot Starmie if it crits with anything higher than a lowest roll. * '''Gym #8 - Wallace (Sootopolis City, Water-type): Luvdisc can barely scratch Starmie with Draining Kiss, meanwhile Thunderbolt effortlessly vaporises it, often before it even gets a chance to attack. Whiscash is fundamentally more of a problem since it is only 2HKO'd by Grass Knot and can set Mud Sport in order to assist its teammates by reducing Thunderbolt's power. In terms of being an actual fighter, it can 3HKO Starmie with Earthquake, not too much of an issue on that front, but just let an actual Grass-type take it on as losing 67% of Thunderbolt's power is nasty. Of course you can alternatively just stall out the effect against another one of his Pokémon. Sealeo is an ideal candidate for this as it does pitiful amounts of damage to Starmie with Body Slam, and you can just heal off the paralysis. The moment Mud Sport wears off, go in on the offensive with Thunderbolt to mop it up, since after a single Surf, a full power shock is a certain OHKO. Seaking is a joke, as even with Rain to back it up, it can only 4HKO Starmie with Waterfall, while Thunderbolt is a 2HKO. Just be above level 44 to be safe from Horn Drill however. Milotic is his most threatening Pokémon, as rain boosted Hydro Pumps will 3HKO, and access to Recover can make the fight drag on a bit, which is made worse by Thunderbolt being a 3HKO in most circumstances. In the long run though, Starmie should outlast it and come out on top. * Wally (Victory Road): '''Starmie demolishes Altaria with Ice Beam before it can even attempt to do anything with Dragon Pulse, even in the off chance that Altaria does endure a hit, it can only 4HKO in response. Roselia is even less of a threat, allowing Starmie to re-live its glory days of beating most Grass/Poison-types as it OHKOs with Psychic. Don't worry about Petal Blizzard, physical hits from a Roselia are not going to be killing Starmie even with a crit (it is a low damage 2HKO). Delcatty can 4HKO Starmie with Feint Attack, the problem for the cat is that Starmie is faster and 2HKOs with its STAB move of choice. Sing can be annoying as a result of Starmie not packing the power to OHKO it, but its still not a threat. While Starmie is able to 2HKO Magneton with Surf, managing to avoid wasting time with Sturdy and healing, Magneton is doing high damage in exchange with Discharge, and a crit will be more than enough to kill Starmie. Even without scoring a critical, it is doing between 80-96% and the move's high paralysis chance makes this an unappealing prospect. Mega Gallade can and will use Starmie to set up Sword Dances, as it is only 3HKO'd by Starmie's Dazzling Gleam, with Surf and Psychic only potentially 3HKOing. While its Slash is only a 3HKO unboosted, after a Swords Dance, it will 2HKO Starmie, with a critical hit being a death sentence. * '''Elite Four Sidney (Ever Grande City, Dark-type): While at first glance this would seem like an extremely dangerous fight for Starmie to be involved in, its high speed and coverage movepool does allow it to fight if needed. For example at equal levels, it shares a 2HKO with Surf/Dazzling Gleam and Mightyena's Crunch, with the odds of it being OHKO'd first by a critical becoming ever more favourable the closer Starmie is leveled in accordance with Steven. Shiftry should be avoided, as even at higher levels making Leaf Blade a 2HKO, its increased critical ratio makes Ice Beam being a 2HKO even at levels rivalling Steven a liability. However the Rindo berry does shift this firmly in Starmie's favour, even after Fake Out. Cacturne should be avoided in general, as Ice Beam needs to roll high to OHKO, meanwhile a boosted Payback is doing nearly all of Starmie's hp in one shot at level 57. Sharpedo is a joke, as Starmie outspeeds and dismantles it with whatever super effective move it feels like, just be careful at lower levels, as you will need the expert belt to ensure the OHKO at level 50 to avoid being killed by Crunch. Absol should be avoided unless Starmie is at a level suited to fighting Steven, as it will not OHKO Absol around the same level. Throw in Night Slash having a high critical ratio on a Pokémon with Super Luck and that will probably result in Starmie getting ruined in response. Even then it is an uncomfortable proposition unless Absol has been weakened prior as Dazzling Gleam only has a chance to OHKO at level 57. * Elite Four Phoebe (Ever Grande City, Ghost-type): '''Again not a good place for Starmie to find itself in, however, Phoebe's team has not seen close to the same level of improvement that Sidney's has between gen 3 and the remakes, and as such Starmie can hold its own here. Her lead Dusclops is more than manageable for Starmie, as Surf 2HKOs if Starmie is holding a type boosting item, meanwhile Shadow Punch is a 3HKO. Just be wary of Curse, as while it make taking Dusclops down significantly easier, the recoil damage will force you to switch afterwards. Banette's Shadow Ball stings, doing a maximum of 64%. However, Starmie 2HKOs it without much effort with Surf. Fighting both back to back will get Starmie killed, so back out after bringing one down. Sableye's Shadow Claw has a chance to 2HKO a level 57 Starmie, and even after Fake Out, a critical will not be lethal if Starmie hasn't taken prior damage in this fight. Meanwhile Surf and Dazzling Gleam 2HKO Sableye in exchange. Dusknoir is significantly less imposing then it looks, as Hex and Thunder Punch are only 3HKOs, meanwhile Surf has a high chance to 2HKO. * '''Elite Four Glacia (Ever Grande City, Ice-type): If it was not for Light Screen, Starmie could happily dismantle her lead Glalie, as Surf would 2HKO compared to Crunch's 3HKO. However, Glalie will live the second Surf with the screen up, and then will probably be healed back to full, just dragging out the fight and letting it set hail, lead with something that can smack it for super effective damage, preventing her setup as much as possible is ideal. It is a slightly more favourable encounter with the second Glalie if Light Screen is not up however. Surf still 2HKOs, and the retaliation of Freeze Dry is also a 2HKO but cannot kill on a crit even after hail chip. Avoid both Froslass if Hail is up, dealing with STAB super effective moves when the opponent has an evasion boost is a terrible idea. Outside of hail, Starmie 2HKOs both with Surf, however the one with Shadow Ball will 2HKO Starmie is exchange, making prior damage (probably against a Glalie) extremely dangerous. The one with Ominous wind can only 3HKO, making it a still somewhat dangerous encounter if Starmie is weakened from previous fights, but significantly more manageable, provided Starmie does not get bogged down by Confuse Ray. Walrein is the least threatening of the bunch, only able to 5HKO with Body Slam unless Starmie is below level 55, in which case Sheer Cold becomes an issue to think about. Regardless, at level 57 Thunderbolt cleanly 2HKOs with the expert belt equipped, and has a tiny chance to do so without the item. * Elite Four Drake (Ever Grande City, Dragon-type): '''Starmie outspeeds every single one of his Pokémon and should quickly dispatch anything not named Kingdra with Ice Beam before resistance can be formed against it. Just equip the expert belt to absolutely ensure the OHKOs on Altaria and Salamence at level 57, the odds are heavily in your favour but getting hit by Salamence in particular is not fun since Crunch does about 60-70% if it lives. Kingdra is a slower affair without Dazzling Gleam, being 4HKO'd by either part of the boltbeam combination.Meanwhile it 3HKOs with Dragon Pulse and can force switches with Yawn. Do note that even with Dazzling Gleam, Starmie needs the expert belt in order to 2HKO it, and will likely need to switch out afterwards due to Yawn. * '''Champion Steven (Ever Grande City, Steel-type): At equal levels, and with the expert belt, Starmie 2HKOs Skarmory with Thunderbolt, although item usage on Steven's end will likely raise that to a 3HKO. Using Ice Beam to chip first is recommended if you want to speed things up. The most threatening thing Skarmory can do here is setting spikes, as the chip damage to other teammates can be devastating against his team. Toxic can also be annoying without Natural Cure, and Aerial Ace is a 4HKO on Starmie. Claydol is frustrating as Starmie needs 181 special attack in order to OHKO it with Surf without a critical hit. This requires perfect IVs, a boosting nature and heavy EV investment. In most cases, Claydol will get to set up Light Screen before being brought down, effectively crippling Starmie while its up. In the off chance it attacks instead, Earth Power is a likely 3HKO. Assuming the barrier is not set up, Starmie demolishes Aggron, if it lacked Sturdy. While it is still a 2HKO, and can force Steven to burn Full restores, getting hit by a critical Stone Edge hurts, and prior damage can make it a difficult hit to swallow. Please refrain from having Starmie fight Cradily, even with Ice Beam. While it might have a chance to 2HKO, Giga Drain is a certain 2HKO and basically removes the chance Ice Beam had through the hp drain effect. Armaldo is a dicey prospect, as Surf is not certain to OHKO even with the expert belt, and X-scissor is not something Starmie wants to take, with Spikes chip making it certain death. If Starmie has 144 special attack or more it can freely engage with the expert belt, as Surf becomes a certain OHKO. Do not fight Mega Metagross unless its heavily weakened and Starmie is going in for a revenge kill. This is because Starmie needs to be basically perfect in terms of special attacking, carrying the mystic water and running Hydro Pump in order to 2HKO it. Meanwhile Giga Impact has a respectable chance of flat out OHKOing Starmie in response. Without Hydro Pump, Starmie needs the aforementioned conditions to out damage the resisted Meteor Mash and Zen Headbutt with Surf. In general do not approach if Starmie has less then 154 speed, as this makes it either slower or equal to Mega Metagross after the first turn, which is extremely dangerous. * Post-Game: The post credits fight with your Rival is a joke due to their significantly lower levels then Steven. Just be careful around Mega Sceptile if your Starmie is exceptionally slow. In regards to the Delta episode, Starmie continues to be a reliable remover of anything team Aqua or Magma flavoured and can hold its own against Zinnia in both fights, even if Mega Rayquaza trivialises the second one. Deoxys should be avoided due to its obscenely high offensive abilities and level making it a challenge for anything that is not a Steel-type to endure. Moves When freshly caught, Staryu will know the following moves: Minimize, Reflect Type, Power Gem and Confuse Ray. While Starmie does not learn any moves after evolving outside of the move relearner, at level 42 Staryu will learn Psychic. This is one of Starmie's strongest STAB options and is a worthy reason to delay evolution due to the lateness of the TM. Beyond this is Light Screen at level 46, Cosmic Power at 49 and finally, Hydro Pump at level 53. Only the last of these is worth considering and it would require holding off on evolution until the Elite 4, particularly when it is a move Starmie picks up through the move relearner. It should be noted that while Staryu does have several moves accessible to it through move relearner, none of them are worth investment. As a Starmie, it can learn the aforementioned Hydro Pump, Water Gun, Swift, Rapid Spin and Recover from the move relearner. Through TMs, Starmie has a huge list of moves at its disposal, allowing for it to adapt itself in order to suit upcoming fights. While the Water-type staples of Surf, Scald and Ice Beam are all viable options for a moveslot, providing nice coverage between its STAB options and Ice Beam, it is in Starmie's expanded coverage movepool that it truly shines. Thunderbolt and Grass Knot both provide an answer to the large number of Water-types that are present in Hoenn's endgame, with both providing advantages over the other in terms of dealing with common sub-types. Flash Cannon is a niche option, although it does hit the few Ice and Steel weak Fairy-types you encounter harder than anything not named Hydro Pump while Dazzling Gleam is mostly redundant next to Psychic and Ice Beam, since Starmie does not want to fight Dark-types, even if it outspeeds the majority of them. Psyshock is also an option, utilising its ability to break through specially bulky opponents that Psychic would struggle against. In terms of utility, Starmie gets access to both Reflect and Light Screen, which help patch up its average defensive stats as well as buffing its teammates, while Toxic and Thunder Wave allow it to cripple opponents. Recommended moveset: Hydro Pump/Surf/Scald, Psychic/Psyshock, any two coverage moves Recommended Teammates * Dark-types: With one of Starmie's major issues in the Hoenn remakes being the significant power increase that the Dark-type has received in gen 6, it stands to reason that packing an answer to them is a smart move if you intend to use it. Additionally, a way to sponge Ghost-type hits is always welcomed by Psychic-types. Dark-types compress both of these roles, and Hoenn has no shortage of good ones (even if most of them are either rare or post primal DexNav encounters). In exchange, Starmie provides a reliable stop to most Fighting-types. ** A few examples of Pokémon that fit this description, among others, include: Shiftry, Cacturne, Sableye, Absol, Mandibuzz, Krookodile, Drapion and Zoroark. * Grass-types: 'The type synergy between Grass and Water-types is a long running one, and this still holds true in ORAS. With both types covering the majority of the other's weaknesses, a solid Grass-type Pokémon is a good partner for Starmie, even if it is perfectly able to deal with most Water-types itself. If possible, aim for one that is not weak to Bug, even if the type is uncommon in late game Hoenn just to avoid overlapping weaknesses. ** ''A few examples of Pokémont that fit this description, among others, include: Sceptile, Shiftry, Ludicolo, Breloom, Roserade, Vileplume and Tangrowth. * 'Bulky Pokémon: '''While Starmie is by no means frail, its defensive stats are nowhere near as impressive as they used to be in previous generations. With behemoths such as the primals and Mega Metagross rampaging around the late game, alongside the general increase in power that all types have seen since 2004, it becomes imperative that you have bulky options to fall back on in order to deal with some of the harshest threats in ORAS. ** ''A few examples of Pokémon that fit this description, among others, include: Aggron, Hariyama, Altaria, Tentacruel, Dusknoir, Magnezone and Cradily. Other Staryu's stats Starmie's stats * '''What Nature do I want? Starmie is a fast special attacker with somewhat average offensive firepower, as such natures that boost its special attack that do not hinder its speed is ideal. As such, the best option is Modest. * Which Ability do I want? Illuminate is useless in battle, and makes wild encounters more frequent, do you want more Wingull and Tentacool coming after you? Natural Cure all the way. * At what point in the game should I be evolved? Staryu is underwhelming when you manage to get your hands on it, evolve it either immediately, or delay to 42 for Psychic. Regardless, it should be a Starmie before you even attempt to engage anything with it. * How good is the Staryu line in a Nuzlocke? The sheer powercreep that megas have given certain Pokémon that compete with Starmie a huge advantage over it in terms of raw offensive power makes it one of the weaker Psychic-type Pokémon accessible within ORAS. However, as a specially focused fast Water-type, Starmie still shines. From its blistering 115 speed, to its diverse movepool, Starmie still delivers in a way only outmatched by (Primal) Kyogre. It's not as good as it was in the original games, and nowhere near as splashable, but it is still a reliable ally for a 3D Hoenn adventure. Staryu's type matchups: * Weaknesses: Grass and Electric * Resistances: Steel, Fire, Water and Ice * Immunities: 'None * '''Neutralities: '''Normal, Fighting, Flying, Poison, Ground, Rock, Bug, Ghost, Psychic, Dragon, Dark and Fairy ''Starmie's type matchups: * '''Weaknesses: '''Bug, Ghost, Grass, Electric and Dark * '''Resistances: '''Fighting, Steel, Fire, Water, Psychic and Ice * '''Immunities: None * Neutralities: Normal, Flying, Poison, Ground, Rock, Dragon and Fairy Category:Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire Category:List of Evolutionary Lines with Completed Analyses